News of a deadly terrorist attack in Boston is hitting home in the Maritimes, where connections to the city run deep...Nova Scotia Premier Darrell Dexter announced today that the provincial government will donate $50,000 to the Massachusetts General Hospital for Children in response to the bombings at the Boston Marathon.

"When we were in need, Bostonians were there," says Dexter. "There is a border and hundreds of miles between us, but Massachusetts is always close to the hearts of Nova Scotians. We will do everything we can to support our neighbours and friends in their time of need.”

The ties grew even stronger after Bostonians rushed to Nova Scotia’s aid after the Halifax Explosion in 1917.

“Bostonians found about it. They immediately responded that night,” says Gerry Lunn of the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic. “A train full of relief supplies came to Halifax to help the victims of this tragedy.”

1. A point well taken

It's true, connections to Boston do run deep in Nova Scotia. In colonial
times there was a lot of trade between the two, both still maintain
fishing economies, many Scottish Tories up and moved to Nova Scotia
after the Revolution, only to return in later generations.